Need advice 1964' Stingray : Mandatory first parts & maintenance list for a long dormant barn/garage project car.

[Vettehead Mikey]

I wouldn't compare drum brakes from a Chevelle to those on a Corvette. You can go look it up if you want, but stopping distance between a drum brake C2 and a disk brake C2 are very similar if not identical. Adding a power booster will not shorten the stopping distance, only reduce pedal effort.

The brakes don't care what kind of engine the car has.

If you're just looking to blow money, then have at it.

 

[ShawnBeau]

I wouldn't compare drum brakes from a Chevelle to those on a Corvette. You can go look it up if you want, but stopping distance between a drum brake C2 and a disk brake C2 are very similar if not identical. Adding a power booster will not shorten the stopping distance, only reduce pedal effort.

The brakes don't care what kind of engine the car has.

If you're just looking to blow money, then have at it.

Thanks Mikey, I'm going to do more research on this. I really appreciate your advice. There's a lot of different opinions on this topic and those of you that drive these car on the regular and is familiar with this machine are invaluable to those of us trying to get it together.

What in your opinion would be the best aftermarket changes to the steering / suspension to make a non-powered basic c2 drive right on? Or do you think even with the current options / sub $1,500 upgrades out there that the stock systems if functioning properly are the way to go?

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

I'd say that at least 75% of the aftermarket stuff is either a downgrade (poly bushings) or makes no real difference.

Again, get the car on the road safely and then judge if there's something not to your liking. I could have saved about $5K on my own car if I'd done this. The best thing I did was install a fibreglass rear spring and matching shocks.

 

[ShawnBeau]

Any suggestions on what Holley to get for a carburetor? They seem to have a lot of options nowadays.

Motor is apparently shaping up to be what it was anecdotally described to me years ago: a motor from a race car ... or a built 350 1970 LT1 clone, with 1971 over the counter block, high compression, pop up pistons with the mated 1971 over counter angled plug camel hump heads and the old stock Holley / Vette aluminum intake. I have a feeling when we test the compression later barring any unforeseen damage that the car is going to be something like 11:1 which is all braille to me, and something I've never worried about but I'm learning fast.

It's been a long time but I've taken apart and put back together some Holleys before. Just want to make sure I'm getting the right size CFM as I learned when impertinent that a 750 double pumper is often too much for a 350 even with a performance cam however I'm honestly not sure how this high comp build / set up is going to affect the carb requirements. I read that the LT1 came stock with a 780cfm ... not sure which way to go with this, may cross post over at the c3 forum as this seems to be an similar build to the 70 LT1 motor.

Any yelling at me appreciated.

 

[Tom Bryant]

I'd go digging for that original block, and heads too, if you can find them. Even if you never put them back in the car yourself just having them with the car is worth a couple thousand at resale time.

A drum brake system works well when it's in good condition. These drums are bigger than what they use on the A bodies back then. Also there are much better friction materials available for the linings than there used to be. You can rebuild the drum system on the cheap compared to a disc conversion. I had a new '67 442 with 9 1/2" drums and it was scary to stop from speed. They were way under sized for the weight of the car but these Corvette drums do a much better job. I don't think you will notice much difference unless you do multiple hard stops.

Tom

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

Any suggestions on what Holley to get for a carburetor? They seem to have a lot of options nowadays.

Motor is apparently shaping up to be what it was anecdotally described to me years ago: a motor from a race car ... or a built 350 1970 LT1 clone, with 1971 over the counter block, high compression, pop up pistons with the mated 1971 over counter angled plug camel hump heads and the old stock Holley / Vette aluminum intake. I have a feeling when we test the compression later barring any unforeseen damage that the car is going to be something like 11:1 which is all braille to me, and something I've never worried about but I'm learning fast.

It's been a long time but I've taken apart and put back together some Holleys before. Just want to make sure I'm getting the right size CFM as I learned when impertinent that a 750 double pumper is often too much for a 350 even with a performance cam however I'm honestly not sure how this high comp build / set up is going to affect the carb requirements. I read that the LT1 came stock with a 780cfm ... not sure which way to go with this, may cross post over at the c3 forum as this seems to be an similar build to the 70 LT1 motor.

Any yelling at me appreciated.

I've never heard of any crate motor that wasn't by reputation a rip-snorting hell raiser with some sort of a racing heritage. Most turn out to be as exciting as a taxi cab engine.

Don't expect too much info from a compression test. It's not a reliable test for static compression ratio due to cam overlap. If your intake is a square bore config, you're stuck with using a holley. If it were spread bore, you could use a far superior Qjet.